Archive from November 2013

As the end of year celebrations approach, we start to ask ourselves
which bottles of wine we should choose to accompany our Christmas
lunch or New Year dinner party, and how do we ensure that they are
at their optimum when we serve them. Here are a few tips to
remember, and an idea or two of some Christmas gift ideas to put under the tree!

Even if it seems obvious, one of the most important points is to
have a cellar, a cupboard or storage system that is practical and
accessible. All types of wine rack, wine fridge, shelves or wine
crates can be adapted to best suit the space that you have
available. What matters the most are the conditions and the way
you organise the storage of your wine.

To easily find your chosen wine at the moment you want to serve
it, it's good to have some kind of system in place such as
storing the wine by colour, region and appellation. It's
preferable to store wines that you want to keep ageing in the
least accessible places to avoid having to disturb them each time
you want to select one of your wines that are ready for drinking
now.

You can also choose to put your white wine closer to the ground,
where it is cooler and your red wines above them. As a general
rule, wine is better stored out of its box, unless it is in a
wooden crate. Removing the cardboard box will help avoid passing
a smell and taste of cardboard to the wine.

Wine bottles are best stored lying on their side, so that the
cork is always kept moist. This helps avoid the cork drying and
retracting which in turn will let too much air get through to the
wine and spoil it.

If your cellar is very humid, you can wrap your bottles around
the label with clingfilm to help stop the label from getting
mouldy and deteriorating.

What about the best conditions for storing wine? The more
constant the temperature the better. Ideally between 10° and 14
°, this will help your wine to age at a normal rate, not too fast
and not too slow. In storage places that are not temperature
controlled, variations are not too serious a problem as long as
the changes in temperature are gradual.

You also need to watch the humidity, which is also a determining
factor in how long you can store your wine for. For wines that
you want to lay down for a long time, it's best to keep the
humidity above 70%. Be careful however about the smell of mould.
Think about making some holes to allow a slow and constant
circulation of air. To maintain a constant humidity level, there
are several easy solutions such as placing some containers filled
with water on the ground, wetting the gravel or sand of your
cellar, or hanging some damp tea towels. A humidifier is more
expensive, but makes your life easier!

Your wine should also be protected from the light as this can
cause the wine to age faster. If you store your wine in a wine
cooler, it's best to choose one with a windowless door or with an
anti-UV window. Vibrations can also reduce the storage time of a
wine. For wines stored on the ground, gravel is better than
concrete, as is a wine fridge with an anti-vibration function.

So the long awaited moment to serve your wine has arrived. Think
about placing your bottles in an upright position a few hours
before serving so that any deposits settle at the bottom. Before
removing the bottle from its place of storage, you'll need to
take account of the difference in temperature with that where you
will serve the wine. If they are the same or close, there's no
need to handle the wine more than necessary, and you can take it
out at the last minute.

The optimal temperature varies with the style of wine and can be
found in the wine guides, or given by the wine merchant or
winemaker, if it isn't already mentioned on the label. To chill a
white wine, whether in a fridge or an ice bucket, make sure that
you don't chill it too much or else you will reduce the aromas.
To warm a red wine, it's best to do it gradually and avoid
placing the wine next to heat sources.

It is also often advised to open a wine a few hours before
serving, not just to let it breathe, but also to taste it, giving
you the time to choose and prepare another wine should there be a
fault.

Decanting can be used for young wines that haven't yet reached
optimum maturity or for wines that are still have some gas in
them, but it's best to know your wine before doing so, as it can
also ruin your wine.

Concerning the order in which to serve your wines, it is often
best to go in a crescendo from lighter to fuller wines, but this
is not a stone cast rule, because some white wines are perfectly
able to come after a red if they are rich in aroma, texture or
taste. For that, it is also good to know your wine or to have
been given good advice.

If you follow some of these tips, hopefully you'll receive plenty
of compliments on the choice of your wine for Christmas,
especially if it's a personalised bottle made from your vines! And for
those you don't have the space to store wines, not to worry, that
is what your local wine merchant is there for!

The days are getting shorter and the cold is setting in... winter
is coming and with it Christmas! There's still a little time to go
before the frenetic Christmas present rush begins, but why not get
a head start and discover some original Christmas gift ideas?

Looking for something more inspiring than the usual good bottle
of wine to give your Dad? Why not give him the chance to make his
own wine this Christmas! Your father will be transformed into an
apprentice winemaker for a year with the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience! Adopt some vines for him, allow him
to follow all of the key steps in making his wine, and he'll even
be able to personalise the labels on the bottles of his wine that
will be produced at the end of his Wine Experience.

Your father-in-law is hyperactive? With his Christmas gift pack,
send him off to France for a Harvest Experience Day to pick his grapes and
follow their journey into the fermentation tank. He'll learn from
the winemaker about the work in the chai, and will end up with
his own personalised bottles of wine at the end of his Wine
Experience. He'll also get to share the harvesters' meal and
taste the wine from the estate. What's more, each Experience Day
is valid for two people, so your mother-in-law can make the most
of exploring one of France's beautiful wine regions too!

Your sister loves wine but doesn't understand anything about it?
The ideal Christmas gift for her is a Wine Experience gift pack
including a Discovery Experience Day. She'll roll up her
sleeves and get involved in the work carried out in the vineyard
to produce the best quality grapes come harvest time. She'll
learn all about the fascinating profession of being a winemaker,
and will get to taste the wines and enjoy other local delicacies
during the winemaker's meal.

Your brother is a fan of all things organic? All of our partner winemakers are organically certified
and passionate about the sustainability of their vineyards. He'll
discover the challenges or producing organic wine, and will learn
about the organic treatments used to care for the vines. An
original organic Christmas Gift!

Here are a just few ideas of unusual Christmas gifts for wine
enthusiasts. Thanks to the unique and down to earth approach to
wine of the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience, your recipient will
appreciate one of the personalised Christmas gift packs.

And to have something to open on Christmas Day in front of the
tree, the welcome gift pack includes some goodies such as a wine
waiter's apron, a DropStop, a personalised certificate and
details of the chosen Wine Experience. Who said that Father
Christmas wasn't a wine lover?